Major League Soccer Playoff Matchups

Clint Dempsey (2) and Obafemi Martins (9) after Dempsey scored in the Sounders’ final game of the regular season.Credit
Sy Bean/The Seattle Times, via Associated Press

Major League Soccer’s playoffs begin with four first-round games Wednesday and Thursday. The league’s top four teams — the Red Bulls, F.C. Dallas, Vancouver and Columbus — earned byes and will await the winners for home-and-home conference semifinals that begin Sunday.

New England at D.C. United (7:30 p.m. Wednesday): D.C. United tumbled into the playoffs by losing six of its final nine games, including a 5-0 thumping at Columbus on Sunday that cost the team a first-round bye. United is home for this match, but it may stay there for the winter if it doesn’t show some life.

Los Angeles at Seattle (10 p.m. Wednesday): Like D.C. United, the Galaxy faded like a red tablecloth down the stretch. Los Angeles has the offensive players to contend for the title in Robbie Keane and Gio dos Santos, and it has a great playoff…